Mullings A Political Cyber Column By Rich Galen

�

Click here for the Secret Decoder Ring to this issue!

I Endorse Thee, I Endorse Thee, I Endorse Thee

Friday, July 14, 2000

Bad line, made worse. The empty slogan du jour of the Gore campaign, "the do-nothing" Congress has been morphed into, "the do-nothing-for-people" Congress. That really trips off the old tongue.

ABC's Linda Douglass tied the "do-nothing" issue into a nice package as reported in The Hotline: "That's not quite accurate. This Congress has already done more than the last one, passing 1,700 pieces of legislation, 400 more than the previous Congress has passed by this time. Some measures have been significant. The House has voted on prescription drug benefits for seniors, tax cuts on estates and for married people and trade with China. The Senate has voted to toughen laws against hate crimes."

So, you finally get Bill Bradley to agree to use the word "endorse" in the same millennium as the phrase "Al Gore." So, you need a place to record this historic event. How about Missouri? It's a battleground state, Bradley's home town, tough races for Governor and Senator. No?

Ok, how about New Jersey. Bradley served there as a U.S. Senator for 18 years, and there is the additional advantage of Gore having actually been in New Jersey Wednesday night for some fund raisers. No?

Ok, how about Tennessee. If nothing else, Gore can stop by Carthage and see if the Mayberry's should get any of their damage deposit back. No?

Ok, ok. Green Bay, Wisconsin, then. Excellent choice. Wish I'd have thought of it. That's another reason I'm not on anyone's campaign plane.

In one of my favorite states, New Mexico, one of my favorite Members of Congress, Heather Wilson, is running for her second full term. Her opponent is a man named John Kelly who is a former U.S. Attorney appointed by William Jefferson Clinton with whom Kelly attended Georgetown University right here in Your Nation's Capital.

Here's a little background on Kelly as reported by the Albuquerque Journal: During the early 1970's, while serving in the Army, he resigned his commission (awarded as a result of R.O.T.C) to protest the Vietnam war. Kelly refused to pay his income taxes as part of his protest. He was also arrested as part of yet another protest, this at the Department of Justice. He may have missed a tax return or two (which he now says he subsequently paid) and maybe he got busted in a demonstration, but given the tone and tenor of the times all of these events can be explained.

Here's the amazing part, during his background investigation by the FBI to be a U.S. Attorney Kelly neglected bring up that pesky matter of the demonstration at the Justice Department (which U.S. Attorneys call their Home Office) and the resultant bust.

I seem to remember a whole Cabinet Secretary, Henry Cisneros, being indicted and drummed out of office for lying to the FBI during his background check. The public affairs officer during the Clinton/Lewinsky matter, Charles Bakaly, had to resign and is on trial - as we speak - for misleading a Federal Judge. But this guy got to be a U.S. Attorney - and got to stay a U.S. Attorney.

Another question: Did Kelly receive any scholarship money for taking R.O.T.C during college? That would be scholarship money provided by the rest of us who were actually paying our taxes during the Vietnam war. Also, if he had a commission what was he doing during the time he was still in the military, being a pen pal with the Young Bill Clinton?

The First Congressional District of New Mexico is not likely to end up in the column headed "Democratic Pick Ups" this fall.

GOP Convention stuff: At least two young people will have to get their hands stamped before they're allowed to roam free through Republican National Convention venues. One young woman, Joy Barganier a delegate from Alabama, and a young man, Joshua Workman a delegate from North Carolina, are the youngest, listed at 19 years and change.

Wanna feel creaky? Josh was two-and-a-half months old when Ronald Reagan was elected. Joy was born five days after Reagan's election.

Current Issue | Secret Decoder Ring | Past Issues | Email Rich | Rich Who?